A Cold War-era proposal for a submarine tunnel connecting Russia and the United States has been revitalized by a senior Russian official, eliciting an “interesting” reaction from former U.S. President Donald Trump and a clear dismissal from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Mr. Trump, speaking recently, described the notion as “interesting” after reportedly just learning of the concept.
He then posed the question to Mr. Zelensky, asking, “Do you like this idea?” The Ukrainian president responded directly, “I’m not thrilled,” which prompted laughter from Mr. Trump.
The revived project stems from a suggestion made by Kirill Dmitriev, an emissary for Russian President Vladimir Putin focusing on international economic relations. Mr. Dmitriev serves as the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund.
He used the social media platform X to propose the construction of a “Putin-Trump tunnel” under the Bering Strait. This idea, originally for a bridge, dates back to the Cold War.
Mr. Dmitriev specifically invited entrepreneur Elon Musk to undertake the ambitious project, suggesting it could be built with modern technology from Musk’s Boring Company. The Boring Company is known for developing urban transport tunnels.
The proposed infrastructure would span approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles). Mr. Dmitriev estimated its potential cost at USD 8 billion.